Balchem Co. (NASDAQ:BCPC) Shares Sold by Strs Ohio

Strs Ohio trimmed its position in shares of Balchem Co. (NASDAQ:BCPC) by 30.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 29,000 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 12,600 shares during the period. Strs Ohio’s holdings in Balchem were worth $4,313,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Sei Investments Co. grew its position in Balchem by 7.0% during the 3rd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 121,530 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $15,075,000 after purchasing an additional 7,973 shares in the last quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale grew its position in Balchem by 71.0% during the 4th quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 51,300 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $7,662,000 after purchasing an additional 21,300 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. purchased a new position in Balchem during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $465,000. Congress Asset Management Co. MA grew its position in Balchem by 32.5% during the 3rd quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. MA now owns 225,303 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $27,947,000 after purchasing an additional 55,203 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund grew its position in Balchem by 81.3% during the 3rd quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 13,000 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,613,000 after purchasing an additional 5,829 shares in the last quarter. 87.91% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Balchem Trading Down 0.5 %

Balchem stock opened at $143.12 on Friday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $152.42 and its 200-day simple moving average is $139.22. The company has a quick ratio of 1.38, a current ratio of 2.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. Balchem Co. has a 12 month low of $110.74 and a 12 month high of $159.52. The stock has a market cap of $4.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.72, a P/E/G ratio of 4.40 and a beta of 0.71.

Balchem (NASDAQ:BCPC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 16th. The basic materials company reported $0.95 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.93 by $0.02. Balchem had a net margin of 11.77% and a return on equity of 10.69%. The business had revenue of $228.70 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $234.66 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.66 EPS. Balchem’s revenue was down 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Balchem Co. will post 4.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO William A. Backus sold 7,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $155.19, for a total transaction of $1,086,330.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 5,914 shares in the company, valued at approximately $917,793.66. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, CAO William A. Backus sold 7,000 shares of Balchem stock in a transaction on Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $155.19, for a total value of $1,086,330.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 5,914 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $917,793.66. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CAO William A. Backus sold 15,000 shares of Balchem stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $154.73, for a total transaction of $2,320,950.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 12,914 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,998,183.22. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 76,630 shares of company stock worth $11,843,249 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 1.77% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Balchem from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 21st.

About Balchem

Balchem Corporation develops, manufactures, and markets specialty performance ingredients and products for the nutritional, food, pharmaceutical, animal health, medical device sterilization, plant nutrition, and industrial markets worldwide. It operates through three segments: Human Nutrition and Health, Animal Nutrition and Health, and Specialty Products.